Knitting and the Relaxation Response

What I’ve learnt about how knitting helps you to relax

Pattern details here

What happens to our body when we are stressed?

When we are stressed, our body tries to prepare us to deal with danger. Thanks to our sympathetic nervous system we release hormones like adrenaline and cortisol into our blood that travel around the body and trigger change. As a result our heart beats faster, our blood pressure increases, our digestive system changes, our senses are heightened.

This can really help us in short, stressful situations, and once the threat has gone then our body stops producing those hormones and calms down

What happens to our body if the stress doesn't go away?

In modern life we can be under stress a lot of the time. Relationships, work, financial worries, house maintenance, responsibilities for other people, social stress, worrying about climate damage; all these stresses can build up.

 

This constant state of arousal can put huge strains on the body and our mental health. We never give ourselves the chance to re-set.

 

This can lead to chronic fatigue, frequent colds, high blood pressure, anxiety and burn out.

 

 

 

pattern details here

So how can knitting help me to relax?

Thankfully we can train ourselves to relax by using our parasympathetic nervous system. This is the ‘Relaxation Response’ first described by Dr.Herbert Benson and the subject of the book of the same name published in 1975.

 

The repetitive motions of knitting can activate our parasympathetic nervous system, making us feel more calm, lowering our heart rate and blood pressure.

 

 

pattern details here

What should I knit to help me relax?

From what I have learnt, there are five things to think about if you want knitting to help you relax:

  • Choose a project that has real rhythm like something that is in garter stitch, or has a repeated pattern of no more than 15 stitches with no stitch gymnastics. Something you can remember.
  • Choose a yarn and needles that feel good to you.
  • Sit comfortably
  • Work for 20-30 minutes and then have a break. You don’t want to tire your hands.
  • Make this a habit and you will find it gets easier to relax, just like any other form of meditation.

If this sounds like something that could help you

On this page I have featured some of my own designs that I feel meet the brief of being relaxing.

 

There are plenty of patterns out there and if mine aren’t for you, then hopefully I’ve given you some ideas.

 

I hope you find the relaxation that you need.

Chillie Hottie details here